Nokia's N78 and N96 get handled ahead of release

One of the biggest concerns about the Nokia N78 as soon as folks laid eyes on the press shots was the funny looking numeric keypad -- a fair concern, considering that the keypad's probably the single most used item on the phone. We still haven't spent enough time with an N78 to put those concerns to rest ourselves, but PhoneReport seemingly has, and they offer this lukewarm reassurance: "it isn't as bad as it looks." We'll still reserve judgment until we've pounded out a few digits on our own time, but if nothing else, it looks like the hidden, illuminated button legends are every bit as cool as they should be. The site was also delighted with all the splendors that S60 3rd Edition FP2 has to offer, marveling at the visual transitions and improved messaging client. They managed to score an N96, too, but it seemed like the software build was a bit too buggy to draw any conclusions beyond what mobile-review already had; we wouldn't freak out there just yet, considering that the N78 is expected to launch well ahead of it.